Producer prices barely rose in February, resulting in the smallest annual increase in more than 1-1/2 years, yet another indication of benign inflation.

CVS Health Corp rose 3.5 per cent after Bernstein started coverage of the pharmacy benefit manager with an “outperform” rating. The S&P 500 healthcare index rose 1.1 per cent. UnitedHealth Group shares rose 2.6 per cent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 148.23 points, or 0.58 per cent, to 25,702.89, the S&P 500 gained 19.4 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 2,810.92 and the Nasdaq Composite added 52.37 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 7,643.41.

Adding to the upbeat mood was a vote in which British lawmakers rejected leaving the European Union without a deal in any scenario.

Fueling some volatility in afternoon trading, U.S. President Donald Trump said he was in no rush to complete a trade deal with China and insisted that any deal include how it treats US intellectual property.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 2.43-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.62-to-1 ratio favored advancers.

The S&P 500 posted 61 new 52-week highs and one new low; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 65 new highs and 30 new lows.

About 7.3 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges. That compares with the 7.4 billion daily average for the past 20 trading days.